The present invention relates to display hooks for the display of carded merchandise and the like, and more particularly to improvements in hooks of this type that are formed in a J-shaped configuration. Especially, the invention is directed to J-shaped display hooks provided with balled ends for improved safety.
Formed wire display hooks are used extensively in connection with apertured panel board and shelf displays for hanging and displaying carded merchandise and the like. Because display hooks project outward toward the customer, and may come into contact with a customer passing by or reaching in for merchandise, it has become increasingly common to provide protection for the raw outer end extremity of the wire hook, so that the opportunity for injury is minimized. One of the common procedures for this purpose is the provision of a so-called balled end, which is formed by mechanically upsetting and deforming the cut-off outer end extremity of the wire, to provide an enlarged, more or less spherically contoured smooth outer end.
Certain types of display hooks, particularly those designed for mounting on the front edge of a display shelf, for example, tend to project substantially into the aisle space in front of the display area. Since display hooks used in this manner have increased possibility of accidental customer contact, it is known and common to form such hooks with a J-shaped configuration, so that the frontmost portion of the hook has a generously rounded contour of bent wire, and the raw end of the wire faces away from a customer standing in the aisle space. While forming the display hooks in a J-shaped configuration reorients and displaces the raw end extremity of the wire hook, there still is the possibility of undesired customer contact and possible scratching or other minor injury, as when a customer reaches in for a merchandise item and contacts the raw end of the wire while withdrawing his or her hand.
Because of the residual potential for contact with the raw end of the display hook, even with a J-shaped configuration, the desirability of providing a balled end on a J-shaped hook has been known. Nevertheless, rarely are such hooks provided with balled ends because of the significant extra expense that has been entailed in the manufacture of hooks to provide both a J-shaped configuration and a balled end. Heretofore, this has always required separate and independent manufacturing operations. Thus, it has been not cost effective, in the past, to provide both a J-shaped configuration and a balled end on a display hook, because the cost of the extra manufacturing steps made the article prohibitively expensive to the customer.
In accordance with the present invention, a novel method and apparatus is provided which enables a wire display hook element to be manufactured with both a J-shaped configuration and a balled end, in a single, sequential manufacturing operation, with virtually no increase in cost as compared to forming the hook by conventional means with either one but not both of the balled end or J-shaped features.
Pursuant to the invention, a novel method and apparatus is provided in which a generally continuous wire is incrementally advanced to present a predetermined length of wire into a position to be formed. Thereafter, a series of operations is performed in sequence, generally as follows: First, the wire is acted upon by a cutting and forming bar to sever the desired wire section from the continuous supply and, as part of a continuous operation, to bend the base portion of the wire to lie at a substantial angle to the principal wire axis. The cutting and forming bar then remains for a period of time in its extended position, to provide support and orientation for the wire section, as it undergoes further processing operations.
Following the cutting and bending operation, a forward end portion of the wire is tightly gripped by a pair of gripping dies, while a ball-forming die is advanced against the projecting forward end extremity of the wire, to form a balled end. Immediately thereafter, the forward gripping dies and the ball-forming die are retracted, to free the forward end portion of the wire section.
During the initial advance of the wire into forming position, the wire section is guided between a cylindrical supporting drum and a radius pin, which lie respectively above and below the wire. As soon as the forward gripping dyes and the ball-forming die have been retracted, the radius pin is actuated to move through a circular path concentric with the supporting drum, causing the forward portion of the wire to be bent first upwardly and then rearwardly about the supporting drum, through a bend of approximately 180.degree., to impart the desired J-shaped configuration to the hook. The balled end, previously formed on the straight wire, does not interfere with the process, as the radius pin has completed its bend-forming movements before it reaches the end extremity of the wire.
Because of the sequence in which the operations are performed, and the manner in which they are performed, it becomes economically realistic to provide both a J-shaped configuration and a balled end on a display hook device which can be marketed at a price attractive to the user. Particularly important is the fact that the hook element does not have to be separately handled, in order to provide both a J-shaped configuration and a balled end. Both operations are performed in rapid sequence, while the wire is being held fixed and oriented in the forming machine. When the wire is ejected from the forming machine, all of the operations have been performed, and the wire element is ready for assembly to its mounting base.
For a more complete understanding of the above and other features and advantages of the invention, reference should be made to the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment, and to the accompanying drawings.